Chapter Sixty-Eight: A Pleasant Collaboration

The Prime Minister’s face appeared on the projection screen, showing an unusually passionate expression. After his stirring speech, Fang Shican’s demeanor shifted slightly, while Sazan Kishibe had quietly left the room before the Prime Minister had even begun to speak.

Only Miku Ito remained seated, lost in thought, her face blank.

“To raise Japan among the nations of the world… You mean, you want me to drive out the American forces?”

“Not merely to drive them out. I hope, Miss Miku Ito, that you will use your power to become the pillar that supports Japan. If the international situation or the world itself undergoes dramatic changes, you would ensure that the Japanese archipelago stands firm.”

The girl looked at him, raising her eyebrows slightly.

“Why choose me?”

Her words implied there was more than one candidate in consideration.

In the context of the moment, the only other entity Miku Ito’s “choice” referred to was America.

Yet the girl unhesitatingly placed herself on equal footing with the United States, and neither the Prime Minister nor Fang Shican showed any surprise, as if her assertion had already been accepted in their hearts, equating her with the world’s number one power that had dominated for decades.

The might of the extraordinary was evident.

“With the power Miss Ito has displayed, it is possible to oppose you,” the Prime Minister, a graduate of Tokyo University’s Faculty of Engineering, spoke confidently from the other side of the screen.

“Though the maximum kinetic energy you have exhibited is no less than a small nuclear weapon,

“Hydrogen bombs, created through nuclear fusion with hydrogen isotope atoms, possess virtually limitless destructive power. With enough resources, weapons far more terrifying than the Tsar Bomb could be produced—fifty million, sixty million, even a hundred million tons of TNT equivalent. Faced with such devastation, even you, Miss Ito, could hardly survive the shockwaves spanning hundreds of kilometers and the flames of tens of millions of degrees.

“Moreover, modern laboratories can engineer viral and biochemical weapons of enormous lethality. Through characteristic induction and unchecked catalysis, it is possible to create aerosols capable of spreading viruses over hundreds or thousands of kilometers, which I believe would also pose a mortal threat to you.

“In addition, laser weapons, space-based weapons, electromagnetic weapons… The potential of modern military technology is beyond most people’s imagination. If you are deemed a global enemy, and the world unites against you, worse than the Allied assault on fxs—please believe me, no matter how powerful you are, in the face of the collective wisdom and strength of billions, escape would be impossible.”

The Prime Minister’s gaze was intense as he fixed his eyes on Miku Ito. Though it was a negotiation, his words listed a series of threats.

Miku Ito looked at him, her expression half amused.

“As you say… If there are so many ways to destroy me in this world, why are you here negotiating, seeking cooperation with me?”

A faint, bitter smile appeared on the Prime Minister’s stone-like face.

“—You must understand, Miss Ito. Though there exist such powerful technologies in this world, as I have described, which could possibly kill you,

“These methods—without exception—would also kill tens of millions in Japan.

“Experts at the research institute have evaluated your power and concluded as follows—

“1. Japanese domestic science and military alone cannot destroy you;

“2. If nations—especially America—regard you as an absolute threat and unleash their most destructive means regardless of cost to eliminate you—the most optimistic estimate is that Japan’s casualties would exceed eight million, Tokyo’s urban area would be obliterated, and the national GDP would drop out of the world’s top fifteen;

“… In the worst case scenario—Hokkaido, Shikoku, Honshu, Kyushu would all sink, and the archipelago’s 120 million citizens would perish alongside you. Thereafter, ‘Japan’ would become a name found only in history textbooks!”

The Prime Minister stared unblinkingly at Miku Ito, reciting staggering numbers with a calm face but a voice pulsing with emotion.

Fang Shican, hearing this barrage of statistics for the first time, was visibly shaken. He had never so acutely realized that this girl before him might be the greatest danger Japan had faced in eight hundred years, since the Mongol invasions.

… Yet perhaps, also the greatest opportunity!

The Prime Minister, who had grasped all this far sooner, gazed at Miku Ito, his body held straight as he spoke:

“Since treating Miss Ito as a hypothetical enemy yields such terrifying results—at the moment I understood this, my thinking changed.

“—If we align with America and make an enemy of you, only destruction awaits us—so, if we cooperate with you, wouldn’t all these problems be resolved?

“… Furthermore, according to the institute’s assessment, while your power does not yet match that of the entire United States, if your presence is combined with Japan’s current national strength, neither the Seventh Fleet nor any other force could invade Japan or cast its shadow over our land again. As a lone individual, you are a vulnerable target, no matter how strong; but if you cooperate with us, one hundred million citizens will stand behind you, the entire nation will be your support, and even America would lose its justification for war—if it attacked, it would only suffer defeat.

“In addition, you would become the idol of all Japanese citizens, more sacred than the Emperor, the most illustrious hero in history, the incarnation of Amaterasu reborn, radiant as the sun.

“At that time… the vengeance you seek—Colonel John Folsom; and our national resentment—the decades-long occupation by America—would all be settled before the rising sun of Japan.”

The Prime Minister’s rhetoric, honed by parliamentary battles, surged like the tides of Tokyo Bay. Fang Shican, standing nearby, was shaken to his core by the emotion contained in those words, his skin prickling, eyes reddening, breath quickening. He could almost see American soldiers retreating in defeat from Japanese soil, the Stars and Stripes lowering over Yokosuka base, while the “Rising Sun” flag ascended in the sea breeze at sunset, symbolizing the retreat of the superpower and Japan’s rebirth…

Yet Miku Ito’s expression showed not a hint of fervor.

She simply gazed at the Prime Minister and said quietly,

“…Though you say this, what about the tens of thousands who have disappeared from this world through ‘Resonance of Flesh’ with me? How will you account for them?”

“So that ability is called ‘Resonance of Flesh’?”

Turning this thought over in his mind, the Prime Minister nodded and said to Miku Ito,

“Of course there must be an explanation, and this is part of our cooperation—afterward, I hope you will refrain from using this so-called ‘Resonance of Flesh’ ability, to prevent chaos. Of course, the government can supply some expendable humans, should your power require it—but in such cases, I hope you will allow our scientific institutions to observe and study these subjects, which may help further your abilities.

“…As for those who have already disappeared—soldiers and civilians—we can shift all blame to the Americans. For example, we can explain to the public that you, Miss Ito, are actually a peace-loving empowered individual, but due to collusion between American spies and domestic corrupt officials, these bloody incidents occurred; or say that all the casualties were fabricated by the Americans, that they died in American experiments, and you are the sole survivor, who fortunately gained powers—after all, Americans have done similar things before.

“As for the dead… I believe that if they knew their sacrifice could bring about Japan’s independence and rise, they would rest in peace.”

The Prime Minister’s voice was steely and resolute, devising so many solutions in such a short time that Fang Shican could not help but admire him.

Just as he was marveling, his vision suddenly warped.

For no apparent reason, the world seemed to freeze for less than half a second, and his sight went black for an instant.

But in the next moment, his vision returned to normal, and before him remained the scene of Miku Ito and the Prime Minister seated across the screen from each other.

—It must have been an illusion.

His mood settled once more.

At that moment, the girl raised her head.

In Fang Shican’s eyes, Miku Ito looked directly at the Prime Minister beyond the screen, a mysterious smile playing at her lips.

“Very well…

“I accept.”

The expected success finally arrived.

Fang Shican clenched his fists, his heart pounding as if it would leap from his throat.

The Prime Minister on the screen was equally unable to hide his excitement.

Yet, for some reason…

Looking at the girl’s calm posture and the enigmatic smile at her lips,

—Why was there a vague sense of unease in his heart?

(End of chapter)